Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-09-07

| you nave received an OnenSe, but have
never spoken of it to the off ander. If you
had, he in all probability, would have ex-
planned the matter SO you would have
acknowledged yourself that thsre was
really no ground for Offense; or else he
would have apologized or repented SC
fully that you would hsve been glad the
trespass was committed for the pleasure
received in renewing friendship. But IL
stead of that you have talked @!
the matter &c your neighbors and
ssid so many hard, eXtravsgaut things
about what you would or would net do,
that you are really ashamed to renew the
friendship yourself now, no matter non
penitently he nigh. seek i. In the
meantime you LaYe been CuItivGtinG
hatred in your hesrt til il is all hardened
and 1l!ed with corruption. 1t would De
strange, indeed, if such person did not
fad it hard now 70 renew friendship
How much better it would have been bsd
you oDeyed tie MGsters's command, and
I gone TO your brother at the beginning
snG told him aoCut your grievance. An!
now many withered hearts TO-DAY
How many blasted liY.s? Hog many
desolace homes? How many cursed
churches: How much nate, and srrife.
and bloc ishcd?a Just because brethren
viii not meet brethren as brethren, and
settle difficulties as brethren, and renew
friendship IS brethren, and clasp hands
and ualte hearts a1u move on in the
/ grand march Il life together SIS brethren.
But do you ask: GLOW cen LsdaSll
that" Just do It. 1t only req Rakes IN
act OF the will. Have you not SEEN soHie
who were once hateful eIemiss made
warm friends: WhaL some hsve doaB
others can do. Have you not yOurss1i
! become TeCOnCiled fully to some from
whom you had been e5tranged: Wstt
has been done with some may be done
WITH others, if the proper fort is made
! God would not require US to forgive if we
were not able to forgive. He would not
say "Love your enemies" II it were in
! possible for rs TO love our enemies
Then the responsibility rests upon US
! Shall we love our brethren, including the
entire brotherhood Of our race: or shgll
| we carry about in our bosoms enmity to
mar our own happiness, rs well as that Of
! others, and to hinder cur own usefulness:
Which shall we do.
! Let us see what are some OF the mani
/ fest&ti0ns OF forgiveness. We have al
ready seen that when il is not hearty il
consists in fOrmalIties, feigning to love
/ when we do nOtlOye. Passing and speak
| ing, and being polite, eJc., when IN our
/ hearts We cherish emnity. In such cases
! we would tell person that we are
sorry that heswss afflicted, when in our
! hearts we we're glad calamity had
fallen upon him. To his face we would
| tell him we hoped ne would prosper,
/ while III our hearts we rejoice TO see him
fail. We know that right here many
sincere persons have trouble within
IN their efforts to ascertain whether
they have really forgiven an enemy. They
say Ghey have tried to forgive aud want
to forgive, somehow ii seems thaetheY
can not love the enemy like Jhe3. love
| their friends. The difficulty here may
consist in want Of distinction between.
love as a pyiGCiCIe sud love as q passion4
You have number of friends and lows
al Of them. There is no enmity between
you and any of them. But you are very
intimate with some otyour special frisnds
and ind such pleasure in associating with
them that you seek their company very
often. Now this is passionate love- 1t
may, or may not, have been a passion
to begin with. 1t may have been sim
ply love Of principle, but it is now de
velopeG into an ardent passion. Again,
there are different degrees of love, even
II you deny the distinction We make. You
nave friends, perhaps whom You have al
ways loved, but you love some Of them
with great deal more ardor than YOU
did at the beginning. Your love has
grown. Now, you may love an enemy
one that you know mates you. You
may 1--we him TO such degree
that you can pray for him,
and really feel sorry for him when he is
afflicted. You may sincerely desire his
prosperity in all Legitimate ways, but you
cannot hope to love him passionately.
Now offenses arise in the church. Our
Christian brother offends US. We recog-
niZe the Gospel requirement and seek and
obtain reconciliation. We forgive the
offender. We express our confidence in
him as Christian. We agree to treat
him in every respect as a Christian
brother, except that we will not cooperate
with him any more in Christian
work. And we actually rather
oppose his efforts, because we say he
offended US.
On, yes; we are Christian brethren
and we love each other, and do good to
esch other, and pray for each other; but
We VII uOt SO-OpSIALS Will edCI Quiet. !
There is something wrong here. We ere
sure the forgiveness has not come freely |
from the heart. Well, then dc it over, I
and make it just what it ought to be. |
larry in the closet until you can say |
will not only forgive my brother, but |
will cooperate with him also.
The manifestations of forgive
ness there is simply & man
hesitation CT kindness, and to be genuine |
must be induced By a sincere desire for
the welfare Of the offender.
Then, "Let 6ll bitterness and wrath .
and anger and c!amor snd evil speaking
be put away from you, with all malice; |
and be ye kind one to another, tender
hearted, torgiving one another, even as
God has, for Christ's sake, forgiven
You."- Eph. iv, 31.32.
Think gently of the erring one
Nni let us not forget,
However darkly stained by sin,
lie is our brother yet.
Heir of the same inheritance,
Child of the self same God,
He hath but stumbled IN the path
W e have in weakness trod.
Forget not thou hast often slnned
Aud sinful yet must be
Deal gently with the erring one
Us God has dealt with thee
Palestine.